Business Analytics

Hi Sandeep!
Yes, both are different. Financial analytics in the finance function has to do with analysing the 3 big financial statements (the balance sheet, income statement, and statement of cash flows) within a company. Management accountants and financial analysts also go into detail in terms of tracking the financial health of the business in a much more granular manner, flagging deviations from budget and other areas worth looking into. In the financial markets, the focus is on financial assets such as stocks, bonds and commodity prices (among many others). The work is similarly quantitative, but with a heavy dose of theoretical models (CAPM pricing, portfolio theory, factor analysis etc. ). And statistical models (time series modelling and forecasting techniques). Business analytics is concerned with everything to do within a business or organisation. This includes its financial aspects, but balances that with a focus on strategic and operational areas such as logistics, sales and marketing.

Operations management, especially in a manufacturing context (Since you particularly asked about Mechanical Engineering) involves the complete management of the process where the raw material is converted into a finished product and made available to the end client. It involves, the procurement, supply chain, logistics, inventory management, scheduling each manufacturing process in the right sequence, JIT, process control etc. It's extensively used in automobile, infrastructure, pharma and other manufacturing industries in general. Your job tile post MBA will most likely be Operations Management Trainee before you become a manager. Additionally, a course on Six Sigma or Lean would be a great added advantage if it is not already included in your MBA syllabus.